What’s Your New Year’s Resolution?
Did you know that 50% of adults will make at least one New Year’s resolution?
Did you also know that most people fail to keep their newly made New Year’s resolution(s) with 22% failing in the first week, 40% in the first month, 50% after three months, 60% after six months and 81% after twenty-four months?
Wow!
Did you also know that the top two resolutions are commitments to improving health – more specifically around stopping smoking or reducing the amount of alcohol being consumed?
Whilst we know we are going to sound like killjoys we would love to see more people stopping smoking and reducing their alcohol consumption. Why? Well let’s take each one separately starting with alcohol consumption. Scientific research has shown that heavy alcohol use can dramatically affect bone health and increase the risk of Osteoporosis later in life. The research is so compelling that many Doctors are advising patients to “drink less for strong bones”.
How Does Alcohol Harm Your Bones?
Understanding how alcohol harms bones may help you to consider lowering your alcohol consumption and keeping that New Year resolution.
When you drink too much alcohol – by which we mean two to three ounces of alcohol every day – the stomach does not absorb Calcium adequately. Alcohol interferes with the pancreas and its absorption of both Calcium and Vitamin D. Alcohol also affects the liver which is important for activating Vitamin D, which is also important for Calcium absorption.
Heavy drinkers are also more likely to suffer frequent fractures due to brittle bones and nerve damage, especially hip and spine fractures. Those fractures are also at risk of healing more slowly because of malnutrition (see paragraph above). However, science has also shown that when you reduce or stop drinking alcohol your bones can recover fairly quickly with some studies showing that lost bone can be partially restored when heavy alcohol consumption stops.
What about Smoking?
If you’re a smoker there are many good reasons to consider stopping. Smoking in any amount has a detrimental effect on bone density and impacts a person’s risk of developing Osteoporosis by;
- Reducing the blood supply to the bones
- Slowing the production of bone-forming cells
- Impairing the absorption of Calcium
- Reducing the protective effect of Estrogen replacement therapy
Finally, if you’re a heavy drinker who also smokes you are facing double trouble advise Doctors. Did you know that as a heavy drinker and smoker should you develop Osteoporosis and require medical treatment you will need to stop both completely or the medical treatments are at risk of not working?
It’s a lot to take in but our bones are quite literally our building blocks and to keep our bones healthy is vital. Is putting them at risk worth that extra drink or that next cigarette? Having spoken to many people with bone health issues including Osteoporosis we say ‘no’!
#LoveYourBones
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Please Note: If you are taking Osteoporosis drug treatment you may benefit from a higher daily Calcium intake of around 1,000mg a day. Please check with your healthcare provider.
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